Those Halcyon Days of Youth (Inactive)

Game Master Stalwart

Kylie didn't actually roll her eyes, but that didn't make the bubble of her annoyed frustration any less apparent.

"Oh of all the ridiculous- I'm not some juvenile delinquent. I pled no contest to avoid a media-storm, but I'm not going to behave as though having pulled a bit too hard on a door while trying to save someone's life is somehow part of a spiral into supervillainy."

"But if it will get this finished faster, he left. Living with a telepath isn't for the weak. He's an attorney; I doubt he lives anywhere near Halcyon or I would overhear him from time to time. He is in all respects a thoroughly unimportant person, particularly in my life."

Defend the interface: 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (6, 2) + 2 = 10
add one to the Team Pool

As Techniche lands on the stage Frostbite takes a running leap from a balcony and uses a banner of questionable structural integrity to swing down and slam into the villain. What the he had pictured as a smooth dropkick into a flawless landing turned into more of an awkward shoulder tackle that sent them both tumbling to the floor. Standing up Frostbite shouts at what he assumed to either be some corporate lackey, ”Hey you! Get the interface somewhere safe, like now!”

@Triplight: You can make up some rumors you might have heard, but keep in mind that they may or may not be accurate. :)

=====================
Psyche

Agent Walters frowns at Psyche. "That's not a good sign, Miss Wolfe-Ascher. I'm sure the judge told you that a 'no contest' plea doesn't give you any special exceptions. So how about you accept the consequences of your actions and let me do my job."

=====================
Frostbite

Panic erupts on the floor of the presentation as Frostbite crashes into Techniche. She rolls up from the fall and does a double-take when she sees who had slammed into her. "Frostbite?!? What are you doing here? Ahh, nevermind," she says as she brings up her gauntleted arms.

A pulse ripples from them with a strange whupwhupwhup sound that sends Frostbite flying through the air away from her!

"No you don't!" Techniche shouts as she sees one of the corporate presenters grab up the neural interface and start to sprint away with it. She reaches out with her other arm and another ripple catches the woman and draws her toward Techniche!

"Hey!" Siphon shouts, causing Nadia's head to turn toward her, and into a heavy swing of one of the velvet rope stanchions. There is a resounding CLANG! against Techniche's armor, but the former protégé barely rocks back. "Aw, crap," she says getting ready for the counter-attack.

What do you do??

"I'm not asking for special exceptions. I'm explaining myself so you don't go seeking for feigned remorse that you will not find. I have accepted the consequences of my actions, including those I have not yet been made aware of. I find them excessive but acceptable so far. Please, continue to do your job."

Psyche
Agent Walters looks at Psyche for a moment, then shrugs. She goes through the rest of the list of questions she has, with things like "favorite subject" and "hobbies or interests" along with basic biographical data.

"May I see your room?" she asks when finished.

==========================

For sake of brevity, gonna jaunt ahead a bit with the assumption Inquiry runs a very wide set of scans on the pair. BACK AT THE BASE!

Through a series of wide energy spectrum scans Inquiry would learn that Andressa true to her word is more or less a basic human, testing shows that she is shy of adulthood, around 19 or so Earthen years. Her biological and gene modifications include fine-tuned reflexes, enhanced auto-immune support, Rapid gravity attunement, enlarged adrenal glands, densified muscles, skeletal reinforcement, overall her organs are tuned up and include a few small extra bits likely to help with the processing of alien materials, as well as a neural suite so she can interface with power armor among other things.

Hux on the other hand gives off very few feedback readings, mainly because he simply absorbs the various energy sources, avoids any physical processes out of fear, and if pushed may very well tear up the apparatus used to do so. What does come back however is that he is comprised of various cosmic energies, and a very powerful spiritual force, contained within a fairly morphic vessel. One can guess he subsists on consuming other forms of energy and radiation.

Combined the pair are a true sight to behold. Andressa being the main body seems to be augmented by La'Hux'Ti, seems to be supercharged. Her synapsis fire off even faster than the enhancements would usually allow. Spikes in radiation or energy that would harm her or be detrimental are quickly siphoned off and dissipated. There almost seems to be a layered effect to the pair's brainwaves, and she gains almost on demand application of her further enhanced body mods.

Back at the base

"Good, shouldn't be any problems then. Even if you get any mana interactions, they should be beneficial if anything. And hey, as a side effect I should be able to tell you if you're actually from this Earth or some alternate version based on... intrinsic aura fundamentals? Eh, the technical terms there don't translate well into English. The relevant words haven't been invented yet."

It is left up to the imagination of others just how much of Federation hypertech is actually magic (a good percentage is) and how much is just labeled that way because it's easier than trying to get the locals to understand the relevant higher-dimensional mathematics and such.

Directly Engage: 2d6 + 1 ⇒ (6, 5) + 1 = 12
Avoid blows, Take the gauntlets

Frostbite flies backwards, before impacting with the wall he twists and spin, and creates an icy layer on the wall and floor and uses it to slide back into the fray. With Techniche's attention on Siphon, Frostbite flips over Techniche landing in front of her grabbing her by the arms encasing them in ice, as the ice works its way into any opening it can find and expands weakening the bonds holding it together, he launches a front kick landing squarely on her sternum. As the kick lands, Frostbite yanks back with his arms attempting to rip the gauntlets away.

Isaiah, don't forget about this tidbit of info.

======================

===============================

Frostbite and Techniche fall away from each other, the ice-encrusted gauntlets in his hands, and crackling electricity in hers. Nadia's visor glows an angry red as she starts building up a massive charge to blast him.

Siphon pounces, braving the corona of sparks flying from Techniche's otherwise bare hands. She grabs her wrist and shrieks in pain as the electricity arcs up and through the energy vampire. But she holds on, and the electricity changes behavior.

The crackling energy no longer appears to be attacking Siphon as her scream turns into a triumphant laugh. She breaks contact, wringing out her hand which is starting to show burns all along her palm. "Ow," she says, but still looks pleased with herself.

Nadia slumps back, apparently unconscious. Before anyone can react, the remains of the armor she's wearing activates, sending a force pulse around her. "INCAPACITATION DETECTED. EXTRACTION COMMENCING" crackles from the suit as her rocket boots ignite. She blasts upward and out of the compound, flying off into the night!

"Good riddance," Siphon says, her normally straight hair rising with the static electricity around her. She steps over and plucks the neural interface up with her uninjured hand. "Score! You got your gauntlets, and I can sell this baby at my original asking price. I love working with you." Her eyes are bright and full of affection as she looks at Frostbite with a broad smile.

What does he do??

Ah, yes. Ordnance;

"Yeah, Chrono-Wraiths are pretty elusive. Since they time-travel pretty much constantly, it can be really tricky to track and study them. They do tend to be attracted to temporal anomalies, for better or worse. Some of them seem to work to keep temporal shenanigans from getting out of hand. Some do the opposite, seemingly actively trying to cause paradoxes. They're not very well understood, partly since if you don't directly witness them, it's had to prove they actually exist, since they don't leave any physical evidence of their existence, and any changes they cause tend to retroactively become ordinary history. Anyway, if this Timestamp is an *active* time manipulator, he probably has its attention, for better or worse. Maybe it's intrigued by him. Or maybe it just thinks he'll be tasty. Needs to be investigated soon, if possible."

"My room? Of course, if you think that will be helpful."

Psyche methodically floated upstairs, the doors gently opening before her and closing behind Agent Walters.

Her room was small and neat, basically immaculate. There was a small but expensive looking desk with a laptop still charging. Her deceptively deep closet was closed behind a door that could have led anywhere, no scattered laundry or even a hamper betrayed where her clothes might have been.

There weren't any signs of the hobbies she'd talked about downstairs: No books, no pictures, no trophies or sashes. The end table by the bed had a lamp in the shape of a mermaid, but nothing else that wasn't tucked away in a shelf. The walls weren't entirely bare though; the abstract daubs and swirls on a couple of canvasses were the main sources of color in a room of gentle pastels and rich woods.

"I assume next you'll need to see the bathroom? Or could you perhaps tell me what it is that you're looking for? I'm known for my honesty; I would probably just tell you."

"Or, now hear me out this is kinda crazy, you don't steal it and we return it to rightful owner," Rory reaches out for her hand, "besides there might be a reward because clearly their security was out matched." He returns her smile and leaned in and whispers, "but if you are set on taking, blast me across room so I can keep my hands clean."

Persuade with Best Interests: 2d6 + 1 ⇒ (5, 1) + 1 = 7

Back at the base

"Good, shouldn't be any problems then. Even if you get any mana interactions, they should be beneficial if anything. And hey, as a side effect I should be able to tell you if you're actually from this Earth or some alternate version based on... intrinsic aura fundamentals? Eh, the technical terms there don't translate well into English. The relevant words haven't been invented yet."

Hux split from Andressa for a while, "Well that would be kind of neat. I'm not exactly sure how all the mana stuff works, my studies with the Krol'kraza kind of well.. I wasn't exactly the best student. I should reach out to see if they have an automated outpost in this verse. That'll take time though." The pair had to get ready to head out and meet with Horizon soon.

"Hey Inquiry, as a uh hmm. Since you've displayed more or less human-like emotions. Do you I dunno, miss your home planet?"

Since this is a before can't put too much in, Trip is also gonna wait for a solid response to her description of Alcott before i move that bit on.

Whippoorwill nods to Triplight in thanks for the information on Alcott. "Reputations can be overblown, but it's best not to ignore them. I'll run the archive dives into our databases. See if we can't find some concrete data. Thanks."

=========================

Isaiah has to wait a moment, as Ordnance is quiet for a few seconds. "The Slipknots are currently in hiding after their escape, but agreed. One, they should be apprehended. Two, the chronowraith may be a continued threat to them and others. I will consult with the rest of the Alliance about this matter. Frostbite had originally arrested the Slipknots when they attacked Silver Shield's sanctum. Perhaps he has further insights on them. I leave that to you."

=========================
Agent Walters takes in Psyche's room quietly. She arches an eyebrow at the mental communication. "I always like to see the rooms of the kids on my watch. Are they messy? Cluttered? Artistic? Clean and orderly? I hate to say it, but yours looks like... well, something out of a magazine."

She turns and looks at Psyche over the rims of her glasses. "If you're known for honesty, then let me know the real you. Not just the one you show to the world."

=========================

Siphon's smile fades as she looks at the device in her hand. "A reward? It doesn't work that way, not for people like me," she says softly. She steps closer, an electrical surge powering up as she gets ready to blast him like he suggested.

The blast doesn't come. "I don't-- I don't want to hurt you."

Rory feels the device pressed into his hand. "Promise me that I get that reward, okay?" She gives him a kiss that tingles and smells of ozone.

She turns and releases the charge of electricity. It arcs out and up the walls, causing the lights to burst in a shower of sparks and bathe the entire hall in darkness. When the emergency lights come on, Siphon is gone.

=========================

Everyone

You receive a laminated invitation for a back-to-school bash at Praetor Tower, on Friday night. Everyone gets a Plus One. Swimming suits recommended.

"Be honest. You were going to ask me to show 'the real me' no matter if my bed was made or not. This is me you're talking to, or else I couldn't Send it. Your presence here makes me uncomfortable, and I feel I've been quite clear in expressing that. If you want to know how I act towards others for whom I have warmer feelings, I encourage you to interview them. Not that that would somehow be a truer representation if it matters; none of us present the same face to all people. You're presenting 'warm, reserved, and... concerned.' Is that not the real you?"

-------

Shin looks over his invitation. And considers if the plus one was necessary if he was going to go with Kylie. Hey, did you get an invite to a party too? He thinks to her.

=========================

Agent Walters throws up an "I give" gesture. "Fine. Though, from what I hear, you've got the power to turn me inside-out and make me think whatever you want me to. But we're all under the impression that you're better than that. That you want to be a hero. And that means, I hope, is that you're willing to take advice from someone who's not filled with phenomenal cosmic powers. That I have a little bit of experience that might be useful to you, going forward. Is that reasonable?"

"You've heard correctly. Hopefully how frustrated you are is a good sign that I haven't smoothed anything out though."

She suppressed a wince at the expected spiral of paranoia that came of people thinking too hard about her abilities. "Am I just thinking that because she want me to?" was always a classic.

"Agent Walters, one of the benefits of my own experience is just how much I understand that no one mind holds all the answers. I don't ignore any of them."

***

"I did!" she sent along to Shin in a flood of warmth. "The plus-one does feel redundant, unless of course some cutie's caught your eye and you wanted to impress them." A slightly idealized image of Shin in his bathing suit strutted around his forebrain. "I'll have to project something of course. I haven't exactly packed the pounds back onto this body since Alice was using it."

Psyche doesn't get the immediate paranoia from Agent Walters. Instead, she plants a hand on her hip. "So, are you being frustrating on purpose? So that people will be less likely to think that being annoyed with you is some sort of emotional control?" She studies Kylie for a moment as her thoughts bubble about whether that's solely reserved for her or if others have had the same experience.

She sighs and asks to be escorted back to the kitchen. "Well, I think meeting every other week will be a good start. And I'm not going to settle for some sort of "psychic friends" connection. Face to face. Each time. All right?" she asks while pulling up her calendar on her phone. "Let's say, two Wednesdays from now. How does that sound?"

============================

Moving on to the day of the party...

Praetor Tower doesn't open its upper levels to the public that often. When it does, it's usually for foreign leaders, politicians, visiting dignitaries, and superhero conferences. So this party, open to all the students of Halcyon Preparatory Academy (and a limited number of adult chaperones), is a buzzing affair.

Shuttle buses run loads of students from the Academy into downtown Halcyon to lessen the inevitable traffic snarls. The teens pour into the building and take the high-speed lifts up to the floors designated for the party. The spacious ballroom, the large athletic pool, and several other side rooms and atriums gradually fill up with students ooh-ing over the view and reconnecting with friends before the school year starts.

How do you arrive? What do you wear? Who do you bring with you? Who do you want to meet with/mingle?

To Psyche

I know two other women personally that aren't on the team. One is my teacher, and the other is my older granddaughter. Shin's amused at the idea of showing up with Whippoorwill to a high school party though - in a sort of conservative tweed pantsuit with skirt, a school teacher with wings. I mean, if you want to project something, that's fine, but I want to go as not Horizon - just another student there with the crowd. It'll be nice to not have to put on a performance.

The Night of the Party

Shin looked at his fresh student ID. It was a different last name - anyone could link such an infamous name as his to the supervillain - but apparently Shin had exploded in popularity with the nisei and sansei generations, so it wasn't unusual for him to have that even after the fall of grace of his future self. Though he did wonder why his new records showed him transferring from Albuquerque of all places.

His identity intact for now, he was looking forward to finding like minded students here, see what (no offense to his team) non-hero students got up to these days. He had himself a phone and a nice suit with a charming plaid bow-tie and sports jacket that he thought was pretty nice looking. He'd also packed an overnight bag with his swim trunks and his hero visor, just in case things took a turn to the dramatic tonight. Adjusting his glasses in the mirror one last time, Shin headed off to Praetor Tower.

Of course he'd take the bus. He wanted to mingle as much as he could and not stand out from the crowd. From what he saw so far, he felt more comfortable. Definitely a much more diverse crowd than he was used to seeing in his time. He wouldn't stand out as long as he didn't do anything to make people think he was strange.

Heading there now - should be up within the hour, He thought to Kylie. Where do you want to meet?

TLDR; Shin arrives by shuttle bus, he's wearing a slightly nerdy bow tie and suit, he's going stag, and he'll want to meet normal students - especially those who look like they enjoy talking science!

Gonna play catch up to the party RQ... At the bank

After answering Whippoorwill's questions Triplight heads to the edge of the building, "Alright well, it was nice meeting you again really. I'm gonna go get the lay of the land so to speak, see ya!" She launched herself from the building with a child-like abandon with an almost iconic 'Weeeee' as she descends she rifts out and appears elsewhere out of sight.

Back at base

"Well anyway maybe we can talk about it later I dunno um I've got to go meet with Horizon and his mentor lady person." She warped out and chose a high point in the air to look for the markings that would symbolize the bank. (bank stuff happens)

After bank, once the party invite is recieved

Kayla gets a ping on her communicator from Andressa, "Hey, I got your party invite thing, but I don't think wearing Krol'kraza battle armor is going to mesh well, and my zero-suit might be a bit.. revealing. You still offering that run to find some Earth-wear?"

we don't have to rp that out Kayla we can just say it happens in the background if ya want.

Night Before the Party:

Kayla scoffs ”A bit obvious as to you not being from here, or at the very least a Supe, but too revealing...I don’t think so. But we DEFINITELY can go for a makeover session!” she says excitedly before hooking Trip’s arm and heading for the elevator.

[spoiler=OOC Trip]The lower levels of Praetor Tower consist of a lot of high end commercial spaces. One perk of owning the tower is private extended hour access to the shops. So she would gladly/excitedly take you out on a makeover session the night prior to the party. She’d dress you in whatever you were comfortable in, but it is obvious that Kayla’s fashion sense has been molded somewhat after many television, movie, magazine, and online personalities (streamers, Infini-Tubers, and the like), thus she is not averse to showing a bit of skin. But she wouldn’t push anything on you that you were not comfortable in. However, she would be all about the full makeover experience: hair, make-up, mani/pedi, the works. All on her, of course. So feel free to pick whatever type of outfit you think Trip would wear.[/spoiiler]
__________
The Party:

Kayla was pacing back and forth in the actual Taylor residence. She wanted to be “fashionably late” to the whole thing so as to not appear desperate, but it was hard considering it had been years since she had interacted with people her age in large numbers.

She was wearing an outfit that was eye catching but also comfortable to dance in, with a white bikini underneath in case the party actually moved to the pool area. She was wondering if Tiv would actually come. Or Rory. Or Rory’s...new girl...the thought of which sent a chill of rage up her spine.

She let out a huff of air as she paced past Trip once more and asks ”So...how long should I wait to go down? Another five minutes? Fifteen? Now?”

Cool cool just wanted to make sure before just saying Kayla did that lol

Andressa seemed pretty infatuated with the simplicity of Earth clothing,"So this isn't laced with any nanotubes, poly-steel fibers, nothing? It's quite rustic." She held up a pair of pre-frayed jeans and turned them in her hands. "And they come pre-damaged? Seems inefficient to the whole.. protecting you thing." It takes her quite a while and with Prae's advice she manages to pick out a few outfits though she is rather indecisive on what to wear initially. The first is a probably way to formal suit, it fits well but the black suit is too much Angela and not for a casual party. The second is a skimpy dress which she looks really uncomfortable in, and it looks as if she's trying it on for show and more to see if Kayla thinks it looks 'right' on her. The third is a much more casual look and really looks like someone trying to play up the earthling bit. Tight jeans, Vons brand Sneakers, a Tank-top with a slightly aged pop-culture reference, and a baggy hoodie. The final outfit screams relaxed skater chick, but Andressa seems happy with the feel of it.
"Does this look good Kayla?" She gave a turn-around of each outfit. "It's loose but very comforting, doesn't restrict movement too bad and I can keep my rift generator on me. I just hope it doesn't look like i'm trying too hard to look well 'normal'."

Though she avoided the more intense 'treatments' Andressa did let the staff subject her to a Earth-style cleansing, her fingernails were a mess from having never had them done or maintained beyond functional, her hair needed a similar clean-up but not really any extra styling just some good'ol fashioned remoisturizing, and she clearly hadn't ever heard of make up. Kayla was going to have to teach her the ins and outs of the Terran past-time of putting her face on.

The Party
Andressa and Hux stayed at Praetor tower after the granted shopping trip. She watched as Kayla paced back and forth, Hux watched from the floor following her back and forth and back and forth. "What's the usual Terran standard for the hosts fashionable lateness?" She tried to study Kayla, genuinely unsure of her sudden tension. However Kayla just seems to be worked up about nothing to her. "I'm a bit lost on exactly what the party is about if i'm being honest Kayla. Isn't it to be with people you care about and reunite with them after a hard journey to stars beyond? I think going down whenever would be best, but not showing at all would make you look like a bad host."

PTM(Kayla): 2d6 - 1 ⇒ (6, 1) - 1 = 6
well that's about right for someone who's never interacted with the party problems of Earth Teens

"I am not choosing to hide my frustration, because there are limits to what punishments I will accept as proportionate. Behaving cheerfully and meekly enough that you and those above you believe that I will submit to any punishment that might be handed down could be extremely dangerous for all of us.

Presently, we are well within those limits by the way, Agent Walters."

***

"As if every time you go out in civvies you don't wind up with someone shyly batting their eyes at you." Her words were carried along with a pinching, teasing sensation, but it wasn't painful. "So are Shin and Kylie going to be dating? Or just Horizon and Psyche?

"If you want a part of your life not to be connected with the team then I completely understand. This party's a fine time to try that out, if it's what you want. I can baffle things so that we can go out as normals either way."

***

A tanner, healthier-looking Kylie arrives at the party in a sparkling, expertly fitted blue bodycon that was softened from couture to fun by the canary yellow hints of the bathing suit she was wearing beneath. She emerged from someone's company limo amidst a gaggle of other similarly richly attired BFFs, and immediately swept off the lifts and through the party in a grand processional. "It'll be So Great to see Kayla again. You know we were, like, super close before she got pulled out of school."

"She sure does..."

She was a bit surprised that no one was commenting on her old tweenage crush on Kayla from back when they had all been close with her (Kylie much closer than Jasper), but then again, that had been before Kylie'd spread the Common Knowledge that she was bi, and most people hadn't gone back to recontextualize memories like that.

It was very easy for Kylie to keep up her part of the chatter while her mind was quite literally elsewhere. She'd planned to make more than a cursory sweep of the party for any unusually malevolent intent, but sustained personal projections were much harder to keep up over a body that did ache and sweat and change, so she just promised herself she'd do one once she got a chance to sit down. Still, she made sure to mark where her teammates were; a small sense of pressure signaled her setting up a low-priority link with any who didn't resist it.

I've been so in my own head lately while everything was so crazy. I need to make things right with the team... Especially now that some of the wedges don't have to be there.

Psyche's to-dos:
Make a grand re-entrance to the Academy's social scene.
Make nice with Praetoria
Make a better second impression on Trip
See what on earth is going on with Frostbite
Figure out where she stands with Horizon
Find someone who's hurting and make it better

Kayla sighed and flopped down in a chair beside Trip. ”It’s about making sure I establish myself as a normal teenager instead of some super celeb playing pretend! I used to go to this school with all these people. They were my friends. Then when my powers kicked in, I had to give up all that and ‘train,’” she says, using air quotes to emphasize the last word. ”They’ve all had a chance to live several years of life without me. I want to try to blend back into that with as little hiccups as possible.”

Her foot tapped quickly on the floor for a few more minutes until she just couldn’t wait any longer, and then she said ”Alright. Times up. Let’s go!”

She then lets Trip head on down first, then gives it a few minutes before she takes another elevator down to the party.

Psyche Earlier

I suppose we could use this party as an excuse to publicly meet each for 'the first time'. So now your school friends will see you hitting it off with the pointdexter who then becomes your new squeeze. So...yeah, I wouldn't mind dating Kylie. Just like I don't mine dating Psyche either. Shin's thoughts wander to Kylie in a classy dress with a flared out skirt and bare arms wrapped around the back of his neck.

Let me know something about your school chums? What are they like?

Praetoria Tower

The ride up was a bit cramped, but Shin made the best of it, getting into a couple of brief interactions. Though he had to change the subject whenever people starred talking about how 'hot' Praetoria was. This might be her party but he just wanted normalcy.

He wondered if Isaiah and Rory would show up. Isaiah would probably want to collect more data points from the humans mingling around. He wondered how he felt reunited with Inquiry. Rory he was unsure about, if he still harbored feelings for Kayla. He wouldn't put it past him to still be here just to have fun.

Andressa...well she would probably be here. He wasn't sure how she measured up with the rest of the team yet. Still finding her way to fit in. He knew that feeling well.

Hey, ready for our 'meet cute'? He thought out to Kylie.

Isaiah showed up as... well, as fairly typical, he was relatively forgettable. Certainly dressed formally enough to be at the party, but not so flashy as to draw attention. He was usually his usual 'public face', but also had half a dozen alternative forms plotted out with multi-step shifts that would make it unclear exactly when he changed. Change blindness was both useful and amusing to play around with.

He even went through the trouble of effectively bringing him/herself as a plus-one, signing in an alternative but similarly mostly forgettable female form (though females always seemed to draw more attention by default) as 'Isabel'.

Mostly, they were looking forward to the chance to see what socializing was like here.

Been a bit under the weather recently, makes concentrating on posting hard.

Andressa nodded along not exactly sure what Kayla was talking about as establishing herself as normal. Having no real sense of Terran 'normal' she was honestly confused by what it meant, normal to her was drifting through space, riding the tails of comets, and space bandits who may or may not have been allies. But digressing to nod along as it seemed polite she stood, "Hux keep an eye on things, and don't go tapping into the power grid for a midnight snack again."

She boarded the elevator and rode to the party floor stepping out when it dinged. Stepping out she made her way around listening in on the odd conversation about Kayla, who's dating who, and small mostly exhausted talk of the upcoming school year. Contrary to her typical outward appearance, she kept reserved content with studying everyone before making any false starts at joining conversation. Though outside of their own hero attire Andressa found it difficult to find the other sentinels as a life-line in these tides of almost adults. So the Nomad found her way gravitating towards the drink table where she watched a few kids grab punch before making to do so herself.

meanwhile

Hux continued to eye Kayla chirping a bit at her anxiety before he himself curled up on the living room couch, head resting on the arm towards the door.

She's wearing the third described outfit btw. I'll try to find a decent pic once I'm off work.

Kayla was happier than she had been in some time. She flitted from person to person, group to group, greeting and welcoming them all with bubbly exuberance as she mingled through the crowd. She kept her eyes out for her friends in school before, as well as for Tiv. And Rory. And the rest of the Sentinels in their “normal” identities.

The main guest floor is filled with music from the live dj, and a disco ball and colored lights denote the dance floor. Caterers have your usual fare of chicken strips with a variety of dipping sauces, meatballs bubbling in gravy, mini crab puffs and other assorted finger foods. Sodas, lemonade and a giant punch bowl sate the thirsty partygoers.

Familiar faces from the earlier Halcyon Prep party are sighted. Amber, Jade, and Alexis are there, same with Sophie, Grace and Ne'veah. Gavin, Malcolm and A-Rob, Pru and Joshua, Lacey and Jaden all are excited to see everyone after a long summer.

Kayla spots Tiv before he sees her. He stands at least half a head taller than most everyone in the room. He's got a glass of punch and is nodding in greeting to people who seem to recognize him, though he's still distractedly trying to survey the crowd.

Shin is tapped on the shoulder by Jaden. "Dude! Alton, right? Good to see you again! This is so cool, being in Praetor Tower! How was your summer?"

Kylie feels her eyes get covered up from behind. "I'd say 'guess who,' but you always know. How you doing?" says Josh, who pops around her shoulder.

Isaiah and Triplight, who are basically observers, watch the place fill up steadily with high school-aged human youth. At first, there's a lot of greetings by kids who haven't seen each other in months so a lot of catching up. The dance floor, with its dazzling lights and thumping music, isn't being used for its stated purpose at this stage of the evening. Everyone seems more interested in meeting each other and sampling the various foods being offered. Similar to the dance floor, kids are scoping out the pool, but no one's jumped in yet. But the night is early.

What do you do??

"Oh, it's been quiet. A lot of studying, trying to catch up with where classes will be when we start," Shin replied and mentally kicked himself for forgetting the alias he'd used at that party. "Though I'm going by my middle name now, Shin," He corrected, hoping that no one would make a big deal out of it. "I've come to find Alton not to be cool enough. I want to make a better impression, you know?"

He goes and finds the punch, checking to make sure that it isn't spiked, before sipping slowly just in case it was and he hadn't noticed. "You must know all the teachers - any of them I should look out for at the Academy?" He asked Jaden. "I don't want to rub anyone the wrong way when I start."

Kayla eventually spots both her group of friends from school before she was pulled out of the facility as well as Tiv. She gave the room another cursory scan for Rory. Failing to spot him, she decides to go and rescue Tiv before bringing him over to the "gang."

She circled around behind him before slipping in close to him and walking a pair of fingers up his back. "Hey you," she says with a smile as she steps around in front of him.

Andressa makes a very bad impression in her outfit, being much more of an observant wallflower than her usual rambunctious self. For someone who's stared down behemoths in space and the dangers that come with such things this was oddly intimidating to her.

Jaden gives Shin a wave of his hand. "Well, Ms. Strickler is tough, so you don't want to get her. I've heard she has run her fingers down the chalkboard a few times -- good thing Halcyon Prep's got smart boards now," he says with a laugh. "Mr. Buntz is pretty hard if you fall behind in math... and I hear that Mr. Rutger's phys ed is harsh. Some say he actually trains kids with super powers in hand-to-hand."

=============

Tiv breaks into a wide grin when he sees Kayla. "Hey back," he says as he steps close and puts his arms around her waist. "Neat party. Thanks for the invite. It's been kind of weird at the compound after you left. I'm glad to get away. And really glad to see you again."

A gym teacher who works with hero kids? Shin made a note to check on this Mr. Rutger and see if they might be in on certain secrets. He doubted that there weren't some teachers who would be aware that he was at least not who he said he was in the school.

"Yeah, not one for much physical stuff. I think that I should be fine with math, that and science have always been my stronger subjects - also cooking classes, because who doesn't love someone who knows how to make stir fry from scratch, right?" He chuckled, looking around the room and spotting Andressa standing off by herself. She looked like she needed an icebreaker.

"I met her a couple weeks ago when I was out of town, on a ship," He mentioned. "I think she's coming to the school too. Her name's Andressa. She's apparently traveled around a lot. I think she could use some pointers on what's new around here," He suggested, veering Jaden in that direction and waving to Andressa.

In the corner of his eye, Shin caught sight of Isaiah - with a girl? He didn't think that he had many human friends. He'd have to catch up with him to see what that was about. Kylie he'd give time to, let her catch up with school friends before bumping into her.

"Oh hey!" Shin greeted Andressa with Jaden. "Remember me? We rode a ship to Halcyon together. This is Jaden, he's been helpful letting me know what's going on at the Academy. I figured that he could give us the jaw on that." He held up the other fresh cup of punch he brought with him. "Have you tried the punch? It's delightfully non-toxic!"

Pierce the Mask (Andressa): 2d6 + 2 ⇒ (4, 2) + 2 = 8

What Does Andressa want Shin to do?

Kayla blushed as she felt Tiv’s hand slide across the skin of her waist. ”Sorry to hear that. Let’s not stress about that stuff today, though. Come on! I wanna introduce you to some of my old friends from when I was at school before!”

She slides out from his grip at her waist, letting his hand slide along the bare skin of her back, before taking his hand in hers and leading him over to “The Crew.” Her eyes go wide with excitement as she draws near and she lets go long enough to run up and hug them each in turn. ”Everyone, this is Tiv. Tiv, this is Amber, Gavin, Alexis, A-Rob, Pru and Josh, Lacey, Jade, Gavin, Sophie, Ne’veah, Grace, and Malcolm. Or as I like to refer to them, ‘The Crew!’”

She looks over to the girls and asks [b]”So...fill me in on everything! I have a lot to catch up on that I know for a fact you guys haven’t mentioned in the group texts!”

Andressa perked up at Shin's approach with a stranger. "Oh yeah, we met a little while ago, Shin right? Good to meet you Jaden, I guess that means you're the academy intel guy?" Andressa held up her own barely touched punch drink she had retrieved only a few minutes ago. "I already got one thanks, but it'd be pretty poor planning if it was filled with toxins.." She laughed at what she assumed was the joke before extending a hand to Jaden "Andressa nice to meet you."

She wants someone to show her how these things, Terran parties, work, Shin seems well versed enough in party etiquette that she trusts him as an authority in comparison to herself.

Oh dear, Andressa trusting Shin on modern social norms is going to be so awkward!

"Well, good that it is not...filled with toxins..." Shin stilts a bit, not quite certain if Andressa knows that alcohol is a poison, but hoping that she'll get the joke later. "Right now is where we mingle, jaw with people that we know or who we want to get to know. I'm sure the music will start up in a little while, and that's when you got to find someone you like enough to dance with, put your hands on their shoulders and shuffle your feet around," He explains.

"And there's a pool here too, so if you've got a swimsuit you can go change and hop in later, splash around and have fun. Like the beach, except no jellyfish you have to worry about," He points out. "Other than that, I'm sampling the cuisine and looking to see if there's anyone around that will catch my eye," Shin adds, winking at Andressa.

"Chums?" she teased, "I don't think anyone's had any chums since-

"I'd say 'guess who,' but you always know. How you doing?"

Oh, that's still implanted.

Her eyes tightened, and the corners of her mouth lifted into a perfect smile as she spun around, mind already scanning . "Josh?! Wow, it's been ages. How was your summer?!" Oh hell, he's been talking...

"Shin, we may have to postpone our meet-cute. I forgot about my boyfriend."

When Rory returns from thwarting Techniche, he finds the invite to the party at Praetor Tower. Letting out a sigh as he heads for his room, he tosses the invite onto his bed and fires off a few emails about securing a reward for 'risking life and limb to protect tech which undoubtedly cost millions in R and D, and would have cost hundreds of millions in losses had it fallen into the wrong hands' and making sure the gauntlets made it to the proper authorities. Emails complete he leaned back in his chair, kicking his feet up on his desk, and picks the invitation back up, Plus one... huh.

Rory grabs his phone and starts to type, Hey, wanna go to a party? His thumb hovers over the send button for a second the deletes it, then types it out again, and finally hitting send ignoring the pit in his stomach. This could end poorly...

Kayla gets several approving looks from her girl friends as they size up Tiv, while her guy friends exchange handshakes with him. Pru then gives Kayla an earful of her dating drama with one of her brother's friends Ethan, and how Ne'veah was crushing hard on Gavin but he didn't pick up on any of her signals and now he's seeing some volleyball star from Franklin High and she's totally crushed.

Jaden gives Triplight a big smile. "Andressa, that's a cool name. Is it from somewhere? Sounds maybe European." He shrugs when he's named as some kind of expert on the teachers at Halcyon Prep. "I mean, I'm only a junior, so I haven't had all the teachers. And Mr. London retired last year, so I don't know who's teaching physical science now."

At the party
Rory checks the time. It's been an hour since the party started, and Valerie hasn't arrived yet.

Your

WHAT

Shock, disbelief, irritation, jealousy - a bundle of emotions slipped out of Shin's control as Kylie informed him of her current problem. Guilt and self-loathing reined in his impulses to rush over to her side.

Okay...OKAY. Can I assume that this boyfriend is mistaken in believing you're with him still? He asks as he grinds his teeth and tries to follow the conversation happening in front of him.

"I'll be heading into...into the Academy as a sophomore, so you'll be my upperclassman then. Maybe you can give us a heads up on the social scene? Who we should watch out for especially - I've dealt with a lot of people who were too comfortable asking me to show them how to use chopsticks, if you get my meaning."

Isaiah/Izabel made a few circuits of the party. Not really fully engaging in any one location, but drifting around, seeing if anything worth investigating was going on. That and coming close enough to each team member to casually walk into their field of view in a recognizable form and give them a sly wink.

Unfortunately, they still weren't really of the temperament where this kind of event was actually all that fun. Random socializing was a strain on their ability to rapidly remember, process, and replicate the expected social norms. Culture was much harder to imitate than appearance.

Josh leans in for a hug with Kylie. "Summer was good. Spent a lot of it at our beach house, as usual. Wish I could have invited you. You know, maybe for fall break? The water should be warm enough, you know?"

Jaden, however, looks confused at what Shin was saying. "Uh, no, I don't. It shouldn't be bad if a girl asks you how to use chopsticks. Or, you know, a guy, if you're into that. No judgment here.

"Honestly, I don't think you'll have much problem getting along socially. Just join a club that interests you. Computers, sports, mock trial, trivia club... you'd be surprised what's out there."

"Oh dear, Andressa trusting Shin on modern social norms is going to be so awkward"- Yeah she doesn't know that he isn't in tune with things himself. So it's gonna be her learning from someone who's learning, which is the best way to know if you understand something, but also third hand social pointers has got to lead to some fun right?

Andressa smiled to Shin, "Ah well, I don't know if what i've worn functions as a swim suit." She leans in to whisper "Normal clothes don't disintegrate in water right?"

She then pulls back laughing lightly as if she'd told Shin a joke hoping that Jaden wouldn't find it odd. Her expression sours just a bit, "Ah European....I uh, never really got to ask my parents so i'm not sure. Didn't know them well, kind of grew up in a different system than most people." Her eyes bounce between the two and she takes a moment to sip awkwardly at the punch in her hand. After a long pause she hazarded to ask, "What groups are you in Jaden? If you don't mind me asking?"

"I am...ninety-nine point nine percent certain that only girls appeal to me," Shin said, struggling to hold his concentration on the conversation. Though even he realized his chopsticks comment was idiotic and didn't make sense without more context. He was that distracted.

"I'm not much of a sports guy," Shin pointed out. "But mock trial sounds interesting. I'm also interested in science clubs too. I like the idea of tinkering around with robots or electronics."

Dressed Up and Dressed Down

Having texted Valerie the time and location, Rory finishes getting dressed and was kneeling to tie his shoes when he hears the door open. At first he was confused as the others left already. He looked up to see a very displeased Silver Shield.

"I..." he thought about making a joke but pulled up short of that disastrous idea.

"I..." he thought about mounting some sort of defense, especially to being accused of extortion, but again thought better of it.

"I... I screwed up, I am sorry," his were words sincere and he looked dispirited, he also looked like he was about to puke from the pit forming in his gut. Rory sat down on the nearby couch, he was slumped forward looking at the floor avoiding eye contact with is mentor and guardian, his elbows resting on his knees and his hands clasped together. He lifts his head slightly, still avoiding his mentor's gaze, and begins to explain what he was thinking, "Siphon said she a lead on the gauntlets that were stolen from me after I rescued them from that auction. Turns out it was Nadia who had them and she was going to steal the interface thingy. I guess the two of them have beef over some jobs etc. So I get the gauntlets and Siphon gets to show up Nadia, win-win right? Then Siphon was going to steal it but I tried to convince her not to, but she seemed super desperate for the money. So I was like maybe see if I could get a reward or something, knowing it was unlikely. I figured I'd just get an email telling me to 'F off' and I would just give her the money she split with me from helping her when we got your suit back." Rory sat there breathless for a moment, breaking the momentary silence, "God, I'm an idiot."

Kayla chatted up her friends and, for the first time in a long time, actually felt a little bit at peace. She then turned to the mostly empty dance space and scowled. ”Alright, this is the first time there has been a party here at the Tower since like, ever? So, I REFUSE to let it go down as not having had any dancing or fun! Come on,” she says, hooking Tiv in the arm and then grabbing Amber’s hand but giving all of The Crew a look. ”let’s get this party started!”

As she heads out onto the open dance area in front of the DJ booth, she signals him with her hand for a good party beat!

Provoke, Everybody Dance!: 2d6 + 3 ⇒ (4, 6) + 3 = 13